Stryker Zablocki celebrating with her dad Jay. (Submitted photo/ Heather Zablocki)

By Nigel Maxwell

Proud hockey mom

A golden smile: Prince Albert hockey mom reflects on daughter’s victory

Jan 13, 2025 | 12:00 PM

Heather Zablocki says the family feels like they are on cloud nine.

Just over a day has passed since her oldest daughter Stryker won gold with Canada’s national women’s team at the IIHF World Hockey Championships in Finland. Not lost on mom’s mind are the memories of the first time her daughter laced up a pair of skates or the countless practices and people that have been a part of the journey.

“She always said she’s going to make team Canada and you know she’s just worked hard and strived for that goal and any goal that she sets up, she puts every bit of herself into that and we just follow her along and support her,” Zablocki said.

In the gold medal game, Canada beat the U.S. 3-0 and Stryker scored the final goal. Zablocki noted the family was scattered all over the province, holding watch parties in Saskatoon, Choiceland, Lloydminster and Quill Lake. Zablocki herself was in Melville, watching her other daughter compete for the U15 AA Foxes.

“I ended up taking a monitor and a computer to set up there and I watched from there so I had a whole bunch of hockey moms watching the gold medal game,” she said. “It was quite emotional and quite exciting so we had a lot of people involved all over the province.”

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Technology allows the family to celebrate together. (Submitted/Heather Zablocki)

Stryker led the team in scoring and points and watching from the stands was her dad Jay. Heather went with Stryker to world’s last year when it was in Switzerland and Canada won bronze. This year was dad’s turn to go. He arrived the day prior to the tournament’s start and after the final game, by way of Facetime, Zablocki, was able to talk to them both.

“It was just heartwarming and you know those two were on cloud nine and the smile doesn’t end with Stryker whatsoever. Even thinking about it right now, I kinda get a bit teared up talking about it,” she said.

Stryker is expected to make her way back to Prince Alber in April, but first is finishing up her studies at Bishop Kearney College in Rochester, and will next compete in April at US nationals.

Next year she’ll attend Northeastern and while playing for the Huskies, complete her NCAA tour. Zablocki acknowledged her daughter’s future aspirations include playing for the national senior team and one day with a team in the Professional Women’s Hockey League.

“What Stryker sets out to do, Stryker gets,” she said.

Steve Young is head coach of the U18 Mann Northway Northern Bears, and coached Stryker when she played for the U15 Foxes.

“You know that particular year she came in as a defenceman and with what we had, we decided to move her up front to forward and she took it in stride and worked very hard. One thing about Stryker, she’s very set in what she wants and she works very hard towards it,” he said.

Noting his team’s own interest in what was happening at World’s, Young noted the overall success of women’s hockey is a real positive for the game and attracts more people to play.

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nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On X: @nigelmaxwell